


Where sea meets sky

by un_petit_oiseau



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, I hope, Kara is awkward, Lena is mysterious, Meet-Cute, Mentions of Myth & Folklore, Other Supergirl characters in background, Rating May Change, Selkie AU, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Valentine's Day Fluff, Whoops there's more plot than anticipated, brief mentions of violence, fluff for now
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-15
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-03-18 21:45:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13690440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/un_petit_oiseau/pseuds/un_petit_oiseau
Summary: Kara meets a mysterious stranger on Valentine's Day! Who is this captivating lady? Where did she come from? Is this chance encounter the start of something more?





	1. Chapter 1

“Oh, golly! Sorry, excuse me!”

Kara could feel her face burning as she apologized breathlessly to the woman whose chair she’d stumbled into. The restaurant was packed – she had forgotten that it was Valentine’s Day when she decided to come in for her usual takeout order – and walking through the cramped aisles between tables was even more difficult than usual. She had hit the chair hard enough to almost tip it (and its occupant) over, but she had managed to catch it before that happened. She realized that she was still holding onto the chair and pulled her hands away quickly, fluttering them uselessly as she continued talking.

“I hope you’re okay! I’m just so clumsy, and then I was trying to avoid getting in that server’s way and I just, boom! Right into you. Are you alright?” She couldn’t seem to stop prattling on and staring at the other woman. It was understandable, though, right? Those pale eyes kept pulling her in – were they gray? Blue? Green? It didn’t matter; they were beautiful, captivating, and Kara was so flustered that she only had the vaguest impression of the rest of the woman’s appearance. Sleek, dark hair, pale skin, _definitely_ gorgeous. She blinked hard, almost missing the soft reply to her question. 

“I’m fine.”

“Okay, well, that’s great! Uh, I’ll just go? Yeah, um, enjoy your night!”

She managed to rip her gaze away from the other woman’s and turned to head toward the pickup counter. And, of course, she tripped again, this time managing to pull the beautiful fur coat hanging on the woman’s chair down to the floor.

“Gosh, I’m so sorry! Again!” She scrambled to pick up the coat. Oh, it was soft! Definitely more expensive than she could afford. She hoped the floor was still relatively clean. She caught herself stroking the lush fur and managed to turn the motion into a brisk series of pats, as if she had just been brushing it off. She practically pushed the bundled fur at its owner, barely registering when she felt the other woman’s fingers briefly slide against hers.

“Ah, here you go! I think it’s okay! Uh, I’m gonna -” She pointed jerkily to the counter, feeling her entire body flaming with embarrassment, and walked quickly (and carefully) towards it.

Fortunately, her food was all bagged and ready to go, so she just had to pay. After making some small talk with the cashier while waiting for her card to be approved, she picked up the bag and turned to leave. She took a deep breath and gave herself a tiny pep talk, which wasn’t weird at all, she just sometimes needed a little extra encouragement, okay? She did wish she could just fly out to the street, but that was out of the question. Finally, she was outside in the crisp air of a February in National City, having avoided any other collisions. She _mostly_ stifled the victorious fist pump she gave herself after such a feat, but a muffled giggle told her she’d had an audience. 

She turned her head swiftly to find the source of the noise and almost fell over when her eyes met familiar pale ones. There, leaning against the  rough brick wall beside the door, was the woman from inside. She seemed to glow with the last rays of the setting sun, the light catching warm red and gold highlights in her hair and dancing over the incredible softness of that glorious coat. Kara felt her mouth drop open, but nothing came out of it. 

The other woman’s smile grew, crimson lips contrasting prettily with white, even, and … sharp looking teeth. She held out a long, pale hand to Kara, who  automatically took it, hastily cradling her takeout bag in one arm. 

“What is your name?” Even her voice was beautiful, deep and clear, with the hint of an accent Kara couldn’t quite place.

Kara stood there, mouth still agape, hand still grasping the lovely stranger’s, and said nothing. It was only when the other woman squeezed her hand gently that she managed to snap out of her semi-frozen state.

“Oh, uh, Kara? I’m Kara Danvers! That’s me! Yeah!”

“Kara. How fitting. I’m Lena.”

“Oh, uh, nice to meet you!” Kara realized she was still holding Lena’s hand, becoming conscious of just how smooth and cool it was compared to her own slightly-damp palm. She pulled her hand back gently, regretting the lost touch immediately, and got a more secure grip on her takeout bag. 

“So,” she said, drawing the word out awkwardly, “Did you need something? Oh my god, did I get your coat dirty? Oh no! I promise I’ll pay to get it cleaned! There’s a great dry cleaner like three blocks from my apartment! I spill things a lot, they know me, and they have same-day service, so you won’t even have to wait -”

“No! My coat is fine. I just came out here because,” Lena bit her lip, hesitating slightly, before continuing, “Because you gave it back.” Lena looked up at Kara through her lashes, a small smile quirking her lips.

“Um. Yeah? It’s yours, and it was my fault that it was on the floor in the first place!” Kara smiled brightly, feeling a little confused and a bit warm from having the undivided attention of someone so beautiful. 

“Ah.” Lena seemed a little disappointed at her answer, and Kara felt her stomach twist.

“I’m sorry, I don’t really understand. Am I missing something?”

“Oh, no. It’s fine. Sorry to have bothered you.” As Lena turned to go, Kara reached out impulsively, catching her by the shoulder. _Gosh_ that coat was _so soft_. 

“Wait! Uh, I know that you probably just finished dinner, but I haven’t had mine yet. I know it’s a little weird, since we literally just met, but do you want to join me? I know a place – a bar, but it’s quiet – that shouldn’t be too crowded, even tonight. I’ll buy you a drink?” 

Lena nodded, eyes shining, and turned to follow Kara.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena talk. The plot thickens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super-short chapter. But don't worry, I'm posting another one in a little bit! You may have noticed that my chapter count has increased. I severely underestimated how much I had to say about what was supposed to be a fluffy little story. Whoops! Check the tags for some updates!

When they got to the bar, Kara was relieved to see that she’d been right. It was just the usual clientele, and M’gann hadn’t even bothered with decorations. Perfect.

She gave a small wave to M’gann, who was behind the bar, and led Lena to a small booth in the back corner. The table was big enough that there would be room for all her food, but they’d have a bit of privacy. She wouldn’t be sorry to spend some more uninterrupted time with Lena.

As they slid into the booth, Kara noticed that Lena seemed to wrap her coat more tightly around herself, as if she were cold. Kara didn’t feel a draft, but  small variations in temperature never bothered her the way they did humans.  M’gann came over as soon as they were settled and took their drink orders, waving Kara’s proffered credit card away.  She was soon back with a golden beer for Kara, a glass of blood-red wine for Lena, and two ice waters. 

“Well,” Kara began, shoveling bites of food into her mouth between words, “I’m pretty embarrassed about what happened back there. I’m not usually _that_ clumsy, I mean, I _do_ break things a lot, and sometimes it’s like I forget where my feet are, but honestly that was a disaster.” 

She wasn’t sure where all this candor was coming from. She didn’t even know this woman, had just invited her on impulse to one of the only places in National City where she didn’t have to conceal her  non-human origins. Maybe that was a mistake? She paused for a split second, her loaded fork halfway to her mouth.  _Nah_ .  She trusted Lena, for some reason. 

She spared the dark-haired woman a glance, not sure what kind of reaction she’d see. Lena was gazing at her, not quite smiling, but with a kind of crinkle at the corners of her eyes. Well, that seemed positive!

“You did surprise me, back in the restaurant,” Lena offered teasingly. “It’s not everyday that I’m almost flattened while trying to eat dinner.”

Kara felt her ears go hot, and the prickling in her face and neck told her that she was probably blushing crimson, but she didn’t say anything. It was _basically_ what had happened.

“But, I’m not as fragile as I look, and your reflexes are quite impressive. Catching me like you did, well, someone really clumsy couldn’t have done it.”

Lena’s eyes flicked around the dimly-lit area, as if cataloging the bar’s occupants. What she saw seemed to reassure her, and she relaxed minutely. Kara was fascinated; seconds earlier, she could have sworn that Lena’s face had been carved from marble: her jaw and cheekbones sharp enough to cut, her brows straight and uncompromising. But now, she looked warmer, softer, if still somehow powerful. Her eyes caught Kara’s, their color still escaping definition.

“So. What are you?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some questions are answered, but others are raised. This is definitely the beginning of a significant relationship for our two protagonists.

Kara choked on her last – and inappropriately large – bite. Grabbing her water glass, she gulped at it until, gasping, she managed to force the food down her throat.

“Wha-what are you talking about? I told you, I’m your friendly, neighborhood Kara Danvers!”

Lena’s eyes bore into hers, gaze sharp and mouth determined. The marble was back. “What. Are. You. I know you’re not human. I can tell. No human is that fast. No human is as warm as you are – you’re practically a furnace, I can feel it from here. And no human would have given me back my coat.”

Kara tried to sputter out a convincing deflection, but each word only seemed to strengthen Lena’s resolve. Her mind raced, but she couldn’t think of any way to get out of this. She couldn’t lie to a direct question, and even trying to redirect or give half-answers was difficult. She could feel the truth pressing on her tongue, trying to tumble out. _Fine_.

She stopped fighting the _geas_ compelling her to tell the truth, slumping forward, elbows on the table, like her mother had always told her never to do. She dropped her eyes from Lena’s before speaking.

“Alright. My real name is Kara Zor-El.” She dared to flick a glance to Lena’s face, not sure what she’d see there.

Confusion briefly flickered across those pale features as Lena mouthed “Zor-El” softly. Then, her eyes widened, their color darkening perceptibly as recognition flooded her face.

“I see you’ve heard the name.” Kara drew herself up – proudly, she hoped - and dropped part of her _glamour_ , her eyes burning fiery instead of blue, a delicate, golden tracery of scales gleaming faintly over her skin. She didn’t release the magic completely – her true size was far too large for the booth, and she had no desire to wreck M’gann’s bar. But it was enough to give Lena a glimpse of what she hid under the sunny, human façade.

Once she felt enough time had passed, she flipped the _glamour_ back over herself like a cloak, shifting back into an outwardly normal, completely human, woman.

“Satisfied?” She asked, somewhat stiffly.

This night was rapidly becoming one of the most embarrassing of her life. She hadn’t slipped up this badly in over a decade, not since being adopted by the Danvers. They’d been patient with her; adolescent dragons were notoriously difficult for any family to handle, much less a human one. At least her parents had taught her about _glamours_ before they’d died. That magic was uniquely draconic; not even Alex’s own talent for enchantments would have replaced such knowledge. Beneath her embarrassment, however, she felt more than a twinge of admiration. Lena wasn’t just beautiful and slightly terrifying; she was smart and observant, too, to notice Kara’s subterfuge . _She’d be a good match_ , a voice in Kara’s mind whispered invitingly. She blinked, startled, and stifled that voice quickly.

“Not to be rude, but is that all?” Kara inquired, feeling a little nervous about Lena’s continued silence.

“Ah, yes. Well, that is, no.” Lena flushed suddenly, color blooming darkly in her pale cheeks. “I, well, I mean, you’re a dragon, clearly. But, how, exactly? I thought you were,” she gulped convulsively, “All dead.”

“Most of us are. The rest are … scattered, in hiding. Like me. You’re the first person to recognize me for what I am in a long time. I was taken in by a human family when my parents di – when they were killed. They taught me how to fit in. Most humans don’t even know that magic exists. Good thing, too, or I’d probably be dead already.”

Lena nodded solemnly. “The hunters. I know.” Her expression suggested more than a passing familiarity, and a bloom of curiosity stirred in Kara’s thoughts.

She peered into Lena’s eyes, their color still darkened, trying to read the emotions she saw there. But she’d never been very good at truly understanding the subtler facial expressions. Dragons in their natural forms didn’t have a lot of facial muscles, after all, and more could be learned from studying body language, vocal changes, and scale color shifts. Even her time living in human society hadn’t changed how difficult she found it to understand human faces. Lena seemed like a master at schooling her expression, in any case. Kara suspected that she’d only noticed Lena’s major reactions, the strongest ones. And that only because Lena’s face was one of the most striking she’d seen; she couldn’t stop studying it if she tried. That quiet voice in the back of her mind returned, whispering about Lena’s suitability, her obvious quality. _Shut up_ , she thought back fiercely. The dynasty was dead. There was no reason for her to be thinking of Lena like that, like some kind of… She cut that thought off abruptly.

“What could you possibly know about the hunters?” Oops, that sounded more disdainful than she’d intended, and she grimaced at herself.

Fortunately, the tone of the question didn’t seem to ruffle Lena’s composure much. She smiled tightly. “I’m, I suppose you could say, _intimately_ acquainted with them.” The coldness in her voice struck Kara like a slap, and she recoiled too hard, slamming into the back rest of her side of their booth. Her muscles tightened, ready to fight or flee, hoping she could manage the latter, but willing to do the former if necessary. She could feel her body automatically drawing in more oxygen, her breaths deepening, preparing to convert it to flame.

Lena noticed the change in the atmosphere, or at least the change in Kara’s breathing, and grinned suddenly, those sharp, white teeth fully on display.

“Relax, darling, I’m not _affiliated_ with them. Far from it, actually.” She lifted her chin proudly and drew that lush fur around her again, its deep softness – the way it seemed to swallow light – a striking counterpoint to her own sleek, dark, and shining head.

Kara must have looked confused (she was), and Lena sighed gently. “I suppose I must spell it out. I guess our two peoples are from slightly different parts of the world, after all. Your family originated in France, correct? Well, mine is from Ireland. Half of it, anyway, and I’ve always been told I take after that part of the family, in more ways than one.”

She stroked her fur absentmindedly, and continued, “We’ve always been drawn to the sea. It calls us, you see, and for some of us, that call is a bit stronger, more of a compulsion. In that case we’re born with these.” She clutched at the fur and shrugged meaningfully.

“Selkies, they call us. The seal-folk. They tell all sorts of tales – how we steal humans from the shore, seducing them into the waves, never to be seen again; how we leave the sea, to walk among the humans in their guise; how we can be caught if our skins are stolen and locked away; how, once we return to the sea, we can never leave it. Some parts are true. But the humans have never bothered to find out the whole truth. They’d rather hunt us. Our magic is too frightening, our mastery of the sea too uncanny, our human bodies too beautiful, our seal skins too powerful.”

Kara felt something behind her breastbone twist, and all the tension left her body in a rush. She vaguely remembered hearing about these Selkies, and now that Lena had explained, it was all becoming clearer.

“ _That’s_ why you were so surprised when I gave you back your coat, sorry, your skin,” she breathed in a rush.

Lena tilted her head and smiled at her. “Yes. You must have noticed how, ah, attractive it is? Humans tend to find Selkie skins irresistible – that’s part of the problem. Even the best humans want to _possess_ us, prefer us to ordinary mates. Once they touch our skins, they almost never let them go. But you just, gave it back? I knew I had to talk to you then.”

Kara hunched shyly and wrung her hands together.

“Well, you make it sound easy. But I, I did notice how soft it is. I never wanted to let it go, really, but I also felt how much it was yours. You know about dragons, right? We hoard things, it’s true. But we _don’t_ steal. We can always tell when something was stolen; they feel wrong. Like they’re always looking for their true owner. Not even having the softest, warmest, most beautiful fur would be worth that, not when its owner is so gorgeous herself.”

Kara’s ears finally caught up to her mouth on the last word, and she clapped her hands over her mouth, staring wide-eyed at Lena.

Lena’s smile grew even brighter and her eyes sparkled. “I didn’t know dragons were such smooth talkers, Kara Zor-El. Or is that all you?”

“Uh, um, I,” Kara stammered.

“Definitely all you,” Lena chuckled. “Well, it is Valentine’s Day, after all, and you’ve already asked me out for a drink. Shall we enjoy the rest of our evening together? I’d like to get to know you a little more, especially now that we’re on the same page, so to speak.”

It really was unfair how beautiful she was, Kara thought somewhat dreamily. She nodded and grinned in answer to Lena’s question, then asked one of her own.

“I’m curious. How did a Selkie get all the way to National City?”

The twinkle in Lena’s eye told her that she was in for a long story, and she happily settled in, letting Lena’s words tug at her like the tide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH SHIT, Kara's a dragon! Did I know that would happen when I started this fic? Absolutely not. Did I have to write it once I thought about it? Absolutely. 
> 
> Also, don't worry! There will be (at least) another chapter after this one. I just thought this was a good place to leave these two lovelies before we get into exploring their relationship. The next chapter will likely take place significantly after the events of their Valentine's meeting. Feel free to come yell at me on Tumblr about this story (the-rhinoceros-ballet) if you want!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena and Kara are well on their way to a deep and lasting relationship when a new threat appears. They are both strong and resourceful, but this danger is more than either of them bargained for.

It had been three weeks since Kara met Lena, three glorious weeks of having a friend who really understood some of the difficulties of living in a human world as something that was decidedly...not.

Oh, sure, there was the bar; Kara knew some of the regulars by now, and M’gann, of course. But they weren’t really friends. In some ways, Kara was only allowed in on sufferance. Dragons were, by their very nature, threatening to some of the other non-humans who frequented the unique safe haven. Some of the Dwarves, for example, regarded her with deep suspicion, apparently assuming that she was there to claim the bar as her chosen lair, or that she was scouting for her next valuable acquisition, or that she was looking for something smaller and weaker to bully. She couldn’t blame them, really; before their destruction, there had been good and bad dragons, kind ones and bullies, in about the same distribution as in any other people. But their sheer power compared to other creatures – their mastery of so many magics, their size, their vast, hereditary knowledge – made the worst of her kind more difficult to combat. The shadow of their sins lay long and heavy on the world, and likely would for centuries to come. In any case, Lena didn’t feel that way about her, to Kara’s boundless relief and secret delight.

She adored seeing Lena whenever possible, although coordinating their schedules was often difficult. Lena, Kara soon learned, ran an extremely successful nonprofit focused on environmental initiatives. It made sense, Kara thought, given that most of Lena’s family _literally_ lived in the ocean most of the time. Lena’s life was a whirlwind of commitments: meetings with donors, press conferences, grant applications, strategic planning, all largely in the public eye. It’s a wonder she had any free time at all, Kara often thought to herself. Kara’s own schedule was fairly unpredictable (the news never stops, after all), but she had a lot more flexibility than Lena did.

Tonight, after a particularly busy day, she and Lena were planning to have dinner at the restaurant where they had first met. Unfortunately, Kara was running late; a particularly glaring set of revisions on her latest article had kept her at work much longer than she’d expected. A text from Lena made her phone buzz in her pocket, and she took it out to check it.

 _At Lotus and starving!_ Lena had added the drooling face to the end of her text, as well as a series of food-related emojis, and Kara stifled a giggle. Lena’s emoji use had skyrocketed since they started texting every day.

 _Sry running late. Omw now tho! :D :D_ She hastily shoved her phone into her back pocket once she’d sent the text and grabbed her jacket. With a quick goodbye to Stef and Dan, the evening crew, she practically flew through the door and down the stairs to the street.

It was already dusk when she got outside, and she winced; she was even later than she thought. She’d need to fly part of the way in order to make it. Looking around quickly, she ducked into an alley and whispered a few words, a sort of chameleon-spell, one of the few human magics she could do. Once she was satisfied that her body was an adequate reflection of her surroundings, she shifted and let her powerful wings take her to the skies.

A few moments’ flight saw her circling the neighborhood Lotus was in, looking for a likely place to land. There was a parking garage about a block away that looked perfect. Once she’d shifted back into her usual human shape, she checked her phone, intending to send Lena an update text. But, Lena hadn’t even answered her first one.

A niggling worry curled in her belly; that was unusual. Lena always answered her texts basically right away when she wasn’t at work. Kara walked quickly to Lotus and ducked inside, scanning for the familiar sight of Lena’s pale skin and dark hair, but she wasn’t there.

“Hey, Zhihao,” Kara greeted the young hostess at the front, “Did you see a woman here tonight – a little shorter than me, around my age, really pale, dark hair, eyes like the sea?”

“Hi Kara! Ah, sure! She was sitting alone at the table in that back corner for about ten minutes, but then a couple of guys joined her. She looked surprised to see them, but then it seemed like they knew each other. She left with them, uh, about ten minutes ago?”

“Oh, uh, okay,” Kara mumbled, mind racing. This didn’t feel right. “Thanks,” she said, already turning to leave. As she did, she caught a whiff of a scent she had missed earlier: iron. She had to find Lena. This was worse than she’d thought.

 

* * *

Once outside Lotus, Kara reactivated her chameleon spell and shifted again, rising above the city. Her belly churned with fear and anger, and she fought to remain calm. Stretching all of her senses, she picked up on the aroma of iron again. It was strong – even a human would be able to smell it, if they were paying attention (they almost never did) – and held overtones of something else, something she half-remembered from years ago. It itched in her nostrils and her memory, never quite blossoming into anything she could grasp. She set part of her mind to worrying at it and turned most of her attention to following the scent trail.

It led her to the outskirts of National City, to the edge of the desert. As she tracked it, it got stronger and mingled with another – Lena’s scent, like salt and wind, but this time tinged with the acrid tang of fear. She was getting closer. Kara began scrutinizing the landscape below, opening her magical senses then, searching for anything that didn’t quite belong. She soon found it, a cleverly-disguised dirt road that led straight into what appeared to be a solid rock outcropping. But rocks weren’t usually made of pure steel, in Kara’s experience. She couldn’t see through it – the virtue of the metal prevented that – but she knew that was where Lena had been taken. She landed nearby, next to a real group of boulders, and shifted into a less-conspicuous shape before dropping the chameleon spell. The iron-salt-fear smell was almost overpowering here, and Kara used her new coyote form to slink closer to where she imagined the door might be. She kept sniffing the air and the ground, hoping for new information, forcibly stifling a sneeze. Her mind whirled, trying to make sense of what seemed to be a jigsaw puzzle with several key pieces missing.

That extra frisson of _something_ underneath the iron raised her hackles and flattened her ears. The iron itself was bad enough, she knew what that meant. _Hunters_. Hunters, with their iron and steel and silver. Dragons had less trouble than other non-humans did with those things – perhaps it was the scales? - but hunters’ equipment was somehow _more_ than just the materials with which they were made. They were imbued with some kind of extra power, making them more deadly to their targets. Ordinary iron or steel was everywhere in the modern world, but its effects were just a constant irritation, like tinnitus. Hunters’ iron was more like a burning icepick to the ear drums, inserted over and over and over. Even Dwarves, famously immune to iron and its alloys, couldn’t handle it. No one really knew how the hunters did it, and no one really wanted to get close enough to find out. But now, it looked like Kara might be close enough, whether she wanted to be or not.

A low rumble shaking the ground sent her leaping back to the relative safety of the real boulders. She crouched in their shadow and stared at the not-rocks. Coyote eyes were not particularly acute, but that didn’t matter; she reshaped them subtly to bring the structure into crystal-clear focus. A hairline crack appeared in the face and slowly widened as the rumbling continued. It sounded like a massive motor, and Kara pressed herself closer to the ground, praying that she hadn’t accidentally activated some kind of defense system. As the crack continued to widen, the two halves of the “rock face” sliding apart, two dark shapes exited with a muffled grumble. Motorcycles, from the sound, each with a clearly-skilled rider. Although it was almost fully dark by then, neither one had their headlights on, so the only illumination was the wide, star-studded sky. The noise of the engines provided enough cover for Kara to say her chameleon spell one more time and shift back into human form, and swiftly, before the doors could begin closing again, she slipped inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey folks, I'm so sorry for the long wait on this story. I've been dealing with some pretty bad hand pain for the last month, and it has made writing difficult. By the time I'm done with work and have put in a few hours on my dissertation, I usually hurt too much to do any more typing. But, today I had my first appointment with a physical therapist, and I'm hoping that the new splint and tape I got will start helping. 
> 
> Oh, also, this fic keeps getting longer. Oops! You all just gave me such good ideas in your comments on the earlier chapters! (Supercat_123, I hope this more adventurous turn is enjoyable - thanks for suggesting it!) As always, please let me know what you think, if you'd like! If you'd rather not comment on here, you can always find me on tumblr at the-rhinoceros-ballet! This story is far from set in stone, so don't hesitate to suggest things you'd like to see!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, this story is still happening! There's one more chapter after this one which will wrap it up happily. Just so you know, there is some violence in this chapter, though it is not particularly explicit. There are also brief moments of implied torture but, again, no details. Please take care of yourselves. If you can't handle this chapter, the next one will start with a very short summary of what happened so you can still follow the plot. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it; please let me know what you think in the comments if you feel up to it!

She slunk along the walls, regretting her decision to shift back to human form; human senses were rubbish. She shifted into a coyote again, albeit a slightly oversized one this time. Then, she continued along the path, ears pricked and twitching constantly, alert for the slightest whisper of breath or scuff of a footstep, and nose alternately scenting the air and pressed to the ground, following Lena’s scent-trail. As she headed deeper inside the … bunker … she also recognized that she was descending deep underground, although the air remained fresh. Her ears picked up the faint, mechanical hum of an expensive and powerful ventilation system, although everything else was eerily silent and still. However, Lena’s scent was growing steadily stronger, the fear-smell overpowering everything else and burning Kara’s sinuses. She was glad that she was only a coyote in form, not mind; no ordinary animal would be able to override the instinctive desire to turn and run in the face of so much terror. In that moment, she realized that she wasn’t just smelling Lena’s fear; the depths of the building were saturated with what must be decades of scents and less mundane impressions: Fear. Pain. Despair. Fury. Death. At that, Kara trotted faster, ever downward, and gathered her magic around her in anticipation of what she might find.

When the passage branched in several directions, she paused, sniffed, cocked an ear. At last, she heard movement, voices. The sounds seemed to be coming from the same direction as Lena’s scent, but that way also seemed to be much more well-lit. She dropped the chameleon spell to preserve her energy and shifted back to her human form, though she tried to remain as silent and stealthy as before. The closer she got to the voices, the more distinct they became, snippets of conversation mingled with strange noises – beeps and whirrs and metallic scrapes – floating to her ears. She crept closer, rounding a corner and suddenly coming face-to-face with a guard, armed with both mundane and magical weapons; she could feel the enchantments like a bone-deep itch. He was too well-trained to do more than flinch in surprise before simultaneously opening his mouth to yell and lunging in attack. Unfortunately for him, Kara was faster and stronger than she looked; after a brief and surprisingly quiet flurry of motion, she carefully propped the now-unconscious man against a wall and slipped up to the door he had clearly been guarding. The small window in the door didn’t offer much of a field of view; she only had time to get a vague impression of bright lights, complex-looking machinery, and a whiff of salt and bleach before an inhuman scream ripped through the air. _Lena!_

With a mental twist, Kara flung herself straight through the closed door, punching a ragged human-sized hole in the reinforced steel, and half-shifted her body, replacing soft, human skin and fingernails with the wicked, adamantine claws and slick-hard scales of her true form. This way, she reasoned, she would retain both protection and maneuverability. Breath coming faster with this sudden exertion, she crouched defensively and scanned the room as the echoes of another scream faded.

_Four enemies_ she catalogued internally. _Where exactly was Lena? Fuck!_ Her efforts to get her bearings were interrupted by an attack from the first of her opponents, and she narrowly dodged a projectile that whined evilly with supernatural energy. She fought off a shiver of terror and disgust. That was faerie-killing technology; no telling what would happen if one of those hit her. She would have to be extra careful. Eyes narrowed, she found her target and sent a bolt of magic towards the woman who had fired on her. The woman – dressed in a lab coat but wielding her gun with casual ease – scrambled to the side, but Kara had anticipated the move; the magic bolt followed her seamlessly and smacked directly into her chest, flinging her back onto one of the ominous-looking machines. Kara moved immediately to find her next adversary; the woman would live, although she’d have more than a few bruises and broken bones. Kara would try not to kill if she could help it.

She dispatched the next two soldier-scientists with similar finesse, although one of them did manage to graze her with another of the faerie-bane bullets. She could feel the poison – for lack of a better term – spreading slowly from the wound, niggling tendrils winding their way through her flesh. She’d need special healing after this, and soon. _Only one more, and then I can get to Lena_.

She heard a loud grunting and scuffling and…splashing? at the other end of the room, and she squinted past the hulking shapes of lab equipment to see the last enemy, who had clearly been trying to drag Lena out of a huge, sunken water tank by a heavy chain attached to an iron collar fastened around her beautiful neck. He’d underestimated her, though; by the time Kara sprinted to the side of the tank, his lifeless body was floating in the water and Lena was treading water next to him, rifling through his pockets.

“Lena!” Kara called as she snatched a set of keys from a nearby steel lab table; one of them would probably unlock the collar. “Here!” she tossed them to Lena and then began scrutinizing that end of the lab, trying to figure out what they’d been doing – or planning to do – to Lena.

In a few moments, Lena had divested herself of the collar and pulled herself out of the tank. Her fair skin was blistered where the iron had burned it, but Kara’s attention was quickly pulled to another injury, a long, horrible slice along her thigh. It dripped blood and salt water down her leg, pooling on the floor in a puddle that was growing larger and redder at an alarming rate.

Before Kara could say anything, Lena gritted out, “My skin. Get my skin,” as she pointed over Kara’s shoulder. Kara turned and saw the skin, that soft, sleek fur stretched taut on a horrible metal frame, with a clean, straight cut running parallel to one edge. Her vision pulsed red for a moment as she put two and two together, then she grabbed the skin, bundling it as gently as possible to her chest. She turned back toward Lena and saw her grabbing a sheaf of loose papers and the tablet off the lab table where the keys had been. Kara held out the skin to Lena, who wrapped it haphazardly around her shoulders.

With a glint in her eye and a wry twitch upwards of one corner of her lips, Lena asked, “What do you say to blowing this pop stand? And maybe burning it up on our way out?”

Kara grinned fiercely and let smoke curl out of her mouth. “How can I say no to such a pretty lady?”

Lena began running unevenly towards the exit, papers and tablets clutched in her arms, and Kara surveyed the lab one last time. Then, jaw agape and throat impossibly inflated, she roared flame and fury into the room. Delicate instruments melted instantly, and hardier equipment caught fire, crackles and pops heralding some even more explosive damage in the near future. An alarm started blaring and the sprinkler system whooshed on, but it was no match for dragon fire. Satisfied by her efforts, Kara followed Lena, unbothered by the increasing smoke, and unconcerned by the fate of the injured and unconscious enemies in the building. After what they’d done to Lena, they didn’t deserve her mercy.

By some miracle, they made it up to the huge external exit doors without running into anyone else. They both hunted briefly for a way to activate the doors, but Kara lost patience after a few moments; they had no idea when reinforcements might arrive, and both she and Lena were injured. They needed to get out _now_.

“Stand back.” Kara said flatly. Lena did as she asked, pressing herself against the wall. Kara flipped off her _glamour_ entirely and shifted into her true form. Hooking her claws into one side of the door, she pulled sideways and down. With a grinding, crunching shriek, the steel crumpled and tore like aluminum foil. She kept pulling and rolling the metal until there was an opening large enough for her to squeeze through. Then after a preemptive gout of flame to blanket the immediate area, she slithered out, Lena right on her tail. In the distance, she heard the roar of motorcycle engines, and she knew they were out of time.

_:Lena, trust me,:_ she mindspoke, not waiting for Lena’s nod before she scooped her up in her forelimbs, bridal style. One wingstroke, two, three and she was off the ground, straining to gain height as quickly as possible while flicking on the chameleon spell. She needed to find Alex. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hi folks! It's been a minute since I last posted anything, but I couldn't let go of the amazing selkie story idea by howtobangyourmonster on tumblr. I haven't watched any of Supergirl season 3, but I'll always love Supercorp. This is meant to be a super-cute little love story. I'm not sure if the rating will go up in later chapters, but I'll be sure to warn you all if it does.


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